Now that the Los Angeles Lakers are fully healthy, head coach JJ Redick has been able to start to use his preferred starting lineup and rotations. On Tuesday, they buzzed past the Utah Jazz by 14 points and scored a season-high 140 points, and at times in the second half, they showed brief glimpses of how good they could become, at least offensively.
At least for now, the Lakers have a starting lineup of Austin Reaves, Luka Dončić, LeBron James, Rui Hachimura and Deandre Ayton. There have been calls for the team to start someone such as veteran guard Marcus Smart or even forward Jake LaRavia, and Redick hinted that there could be occasional changes to his starting five.
Via Lakers Nation:
“We’re gonna make decisions based on how the team is playing and how the groups work together,” Redick said. “I’m not like beholden to one thing throughout the season. But I feel comfortable with that lineup, they played a ton of minutes together at the end of last season minus DA. So we’ll continue to build on that.”
Following the trade that brought Doncic to town in February, Redick went with a starting lineup of Reaves, Doncic, James, Hachimura and Jaxson Hayes for the remainder of last season. Doncic is still relatively new to the team, and Smart, Ayton and LaRavia are in their first season with it, so it is important for everyone to have as many reps as possible together as part of a consistent rotation.
Los Angeles has had plenty of time to practice, scrimmage together and watch video this week, as they haven’t played since defeating the Jazz on Tuesday. It will visit the Jazz on Sunday before it plays Emirates NBA Cup group play games against the Los Angeles Clippers and Dallas Mavericks this coming Tuesday and Friday, respectively.
This article originally appeared on LeBron Wire: JJ Redick on whether he may change Lakers’ starting lineup
Reporting by Robert Marvi, LeBron Wire / LeBron Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
